Patients Halt Aspirin, Despite Ability to Cut Risk

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Patients Halt Aspirin, Despite Ability to Cut Risk
Wed Sep 4,10:45 AM ET

BERLIN (Reuters Health) - Although taking low-dose aspirin daily is known to reduce further heart risk in people who have survived a heart attack, many of those who are prescribed the drug stop taking it soon after leaving the hospital, researchers reported here Wednesday at the European Society of Cardiology Congress.



In large clinical trials, more than 70% of people prescribed aspirin after a heart attack keep taking the medicine, but research presented here shows the real-life situation is different.

Dr. Gad Cotter from the Assaf-Harofeh Hospital in Tel Aviv and colleagues measured aspirin-related blood functions 6 months after a heart attack in 65 patients prescribed aspirin. The researchers didn't tell the participants they were monitoring their aspirin use.

Overall, about half the patients were found to be taking their aspirin as directed. A further 22% were taking some doses, while 27% were found not to be taking the medication at all.

"These findings highlight the difference between results obtained in large clinical studies, which consistently report high adherence levels to aspirin, compared to real clinical settings," Cotter's colleague, Irit Dinur, told Reuters Health.

The researchers found that people who kept taking the aspirin were significantly more likely to survive without further cardiovascular problems, Dinur said.

"Survival free of cardiac events was 75% after one year for non-adherent patients, compared to 95% in patients who took the aspirin," she said.

She said the findings suggest that doctors should consider using a blood test to see whether their heart attack patients are still taking aspirin.

"Maybe when patients come for a check up, ideally 6 months following (their heart attack), maybe doctors should test their adherence to aspirin," she said.

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